Call register



Oct. 16, 1928;

A. PENTECOS T CALL REGISTER 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. '7, 1925 A.PENTECOST:

CALL REGISTER Filed Dec- 7, 1925 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 awwemtoz anZ/mr Pmkmfl$5 M aw Two r I Get. 16, 1928.

' A. PENTECOST CALL REGISTER Filed Dec. '7, 1925 3 Sheets-Sheet FMW 2"Patented 0a. 16, 1928.

ARTHUR PENTECOST, OF ITPPER MONTOLAIR, NEW JERSEY.

CALL REGISTER.

Application filed December My invention relates to a device forregistering calls and particularly to a device wherein not only is thecall made but a permanent record of such call is registered and inaddition any message or memoranda as may be desired can be inscribed andretained without possibility of change from'an exterior source. Itfrequently happens that wherever a call is used by one person to summonor attract the attention of another, there is usually no way in whichthe second person may obtain a permanent and unalterable record of callsmade or messages left during his absence. To select an example from 7among those of most frequent occurrence,

the occupant of a house or an office may be out and if no one is left inattendance, there is no way of telling with assurance whether or notpersons called, how many calls there were and what important messageswere missed. Even where servants or employees are available, they maynot report correctly or may even not answer the call and there is noordinary way in which they may be confirmed or checked. My inventionrenders such errors or omissions impossible and in order to accomplishthis, I embody my in vention in a preferred form which is carried outsubstantially as described in the following specification of which thedrawings form a part and where like numbers refer to like partsthroughout.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly brolren away. ofthe device embodying my invention with the parts in normal positions.

Figure 2 is the same as Fig. 1 except that the parts are in thepositions called for by the handle having been operated.

Figure 3 is a front elevation of Figure 1 with the cover broken away.

Figure 4 is an elevation of the interior end of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a part front elevation of Figure 1 showing the handle,endorsing aperture and the illuminating or visual'signal means.

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the interior end of Figure 1.

Figure 7 is a section through A.A of Figure 1.

Figure 8 is a modification of the perforating means.

In Figure 1, the outer and inner surfaces of a wall are represented by 1and 2 respec- 7, 1925. Serial No. 73,672.

tively. Attached to the face of surface 1 is a plate 3 and hinged tothis plate as at 4 is supply or roll of paper or other material 7 whichI also designate as the operation indicator or record tape. This recordtape may be mounted upon stubs 8 and 9 (Fig. 3) which in turn arerespectively supported by one side of the'cover 5 and the bent piece 10afiixed to the other side of the cover and having sufficient resiliencyto allow replacement of.

the record tape supply by springing it enough to clear the stubs 8 and9. Above the record storage is a shaft 11 upon which is a platen 12 andimmediately above this first shaft. is

a second one 13 upon which is another platen 14. This platen 14 has adegree of movement because of the slots 15 inwhich the shaft 13 ismounted so that under the pressure of the spring 16 on the shaft 13 theplaten 14 is always in contact with the platen 12. Loosely mounted uponthe shaft 11 is the handle or actuator 17 which carries the pawl 18pivoted at 19 and which coacts with the ratchet 20 which is arranged torotate the platen 12 in one direction; opposite rotation of the ratchet20 being prevented by the spring stop 20 fixed to the plate 3. This pawl18 is held in contact with the ratchet 18 by the spring 21 affixed tothe handle 17; as at 22 and the handle 17 is normally held upwards bythe spring 23 attached to the handle as at 24 and to the cover as at 25.Extending between the outer faces of the surfaces 1 and 2 is an enclosedpassage or tape guiding means 26 which is shown in cross section in Fig.7. This enclosed passage is held in position by suitable means such asflanges extending from plate 3 or surface 1 and plate 27 or surface 2although any other means may be used which will hold this tape guide 26in proper position. Pivot-ed to one side of this passage 26 is a bar 28adapted to turn on the pivot 29. This bar extends past the surfaces 1and 2 and its outer end is reduced to form a projection 30 (see Figs. 1and 8) which fits in a cut 31 I v c of the actuator 17. On the same endof the bar 28 and adjacent to the projection 30 is a trip 32 pivoted at33 and which is under the action of the spring 34 acting between thetrip and the bar 28. On the actuator 17 is a block 35 located so as toengage with a shoulder 36 on the trip 32 and extending from the cover 5is a pin 37 which acts as a throw off for the trip. The inner end of thebar 28 carries a punch holder 38 held in place by the set screw 39 andthe punch 40 is retained in the holder by the screw 41 the whole formingperforating or visible recording means. The punch holder 38 has adownwardly projecting portion 42 over which is the compression spring 43acting against the holder 38 and the lip 44 of the plate 45. This plate45 is placed upon and fixed to the plate 27 (Fig. 4) and in addition tothe lip 44, it has an upward extension 46 which serves as a guide forthe bar 28 (Fig. 6) and also on this same plate 45 is an outwardlyextending portion 47 having an edge 48 to form cutting means and anopening 49 through which the punch 40 passes in the punching operation.Above plate 45 and similarly fixed to plate 27 is plate 50, a portion ofwhich is bent as shown at 51 and this bent portion has an aperture 52for a use to appear hereafter. In Fig. 5, the cover 5 is shown in partand in which there is a slot 53 through which the actuator 17 extendsand there is also in this cover 5 an aperture 55 which registers withthe platen 12 (Fig. 1). To block this aperture 55 when the device is innormal position, I provide a shutter or closure 56 which is fixed to andmoves with the actuator as shown in Fig. 1 so that normally this shutterprevents access to the platen 12 and no such access is possible unlessand until the shutter 56 is taken from in front of the aperture 55 bymovement of the actuator 17, such action being shown in Fig. 2.Furthermore, I provide signal means, both audible and visual, asfollows. Within the cover 5 and attached to the plate 3 are two springconducting strips 57 and 58 separated by the insulation 59 and 60 andhaving terminals such as at 61 and 62 from which lead the wires 63 and64. On the upper end of the conducting strip 57 is a cam or roller 65and a contact point'66'while the upper end of strip 58 has a contactpoint 67. The contact points 66 and 67 are normally separated while theroller 65 is preferably in continuous contact with the cam surface 68 ofthe actuator 17. The wires 63 and 64 lead to a sounding device such as abell or a buzzer and a source of power as is well understood in the art.The visual signal means are illustrated by a lamp 69 fed by the wires 70and 71 and so arranged that it projects into the hood 72 (Fig. 5) formedin the cover 5 and which has an aperture 7 3 to throw the light downwardupon the aperture 55. The wires 70 and 71 are in the same circuit withthe wires 63 and 64 so that whenever the circuit of 63 and 64 is closedby the contact points 66 and 67 to give the audible signal, the circuitof 7 O and 71 is similarly affected to light the lamp or visual signal.

In Figure 8 I show a modification of the perforating or recording meansas follows. Instead of the bar 28 and its related parts, I modify theplate 45 somewhat as shown and place the punch 40 in the core of asolenoid as at 74; this solenoid having a cover 7 5 and the core isnormally held upwards by a spring 76 acting between the core and thecover. Loosely mounted upon a pivot 77 is a trip 77 held against the pin78 by the sprinrr 79 but which is free to-move upward away f i'om thispin. Arranged to coact with the trip 77 and pivoted at 80 is a contactpiece 81 havinga cam face 82 and a contact point 83, and adjacent tocontact point 83 is another contact 84 held in the piece 85. The wires86 and 87 and the solenoid leads 88 and 89 serve to energize thesolenoid whenever the contact 8384 is closed and these wires may eitherlead to a separate source of power or may be incorporated in either orboth of the signal circuits, it being under stood that all of thesecircuits may be varied to suit conditions and that the source of poweris not important except that it be adequate to the needs of the device.

In the operation of my device, the normal inoperative position is shownin Fig. 1 where the record tape 7 passes from the rear of the storageroll, forward and over the platen 12 (which may be called theregistration platen), under the platen 14 (which may be called the feedplaten) and thus through the closed passage 26 until it emerges throughthe opening between plates 47 and 51 and under the punch 40 on theinterior end of the device as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Opera tion occursby movement of the actuator 17 from its normal position of Fig. 1 to anyiiitermediate point between that and the position of Fig. 2. When theactuator is so moved, it carries with it the shutter 56 to expose therecord tape 7 on the endorsing platen 12 through the aperture 55. Alsothe cam surface 68 of the actuator 17 flexes the strip 57 to makecontact between the points 66 and 67 to close the signal circuitswhereupon the buzzer or bell will sound and the lamp 69 will light bothas a signal and to illuminate the endorsing surface in the aperture 55.Both of these signals will continue in action as long as the actuator isheld away from its normal position. Also as the actuator is moved, theblock 35 goes upward. engages the shoulder 36 of the trip '32 and raisesthe bar 28 which in turn forces the perforating means downward at theinterior end of the device so that the punch 40 passes through therecord tape 7 and makes the permanent and visible record that the callregister has been operated and a call made. By the time the perforationhas been made, the trip 32 has been raised to a point where it con tactswith the pin 37 whereupon the trip is moved out of engagement with theblock 35. When this occurs, the spring l3 which has been compressed inthe perforating operation, then restores the perforating means upwardly,and as the trip 32 is outof engagement the bar 28 resumes its normalposition by turning about the pivot 29. Also in this movement of theactuator 17, the pawl 18 is pulled over the ratchet 20; this ratchetbeing held against movement by the stop 2O so that the platen 12 doesnot move nor does the record tape 7; in other words, the feeding meansjust mentioned is prepared for subsequent action. Therefore, from theforegoing it will be seen that a movement of the actu ator away fromnormal exposes varying degrees of the record tape on the registrationplaten in accordance with the extent of such movement, that theperforating means is actuated to make the visible and permanent recordand is restored, that either or both of the audible and visual signalmeans are operated and that the feeding meansis prepared also to act inproportion to the extent of actuator movement. When the actuator 17 hasbeen moved as just described, and as" illustrated in Fig. 2, its spring23 is extended and when the actuator is released, this spring causes thereturn movement to normal; in such movement and the feeding means havingbeen prepared, the pawl 18 causes the ratchet 20 and the platen 12 torotate and thus feed the record tape 7 forward under the feed platen 14,through the closed passage 26 and out over the cutting edge 48 on theinterior end of the device. At the same time, the shutter 56 is movingwith the actuator 17 to close the aperture 55 and the roller 65 ismoving from the high part of the actuator cam surface 68 to break thecontact 6667 and open the circuit of the audible and visual signalmeans; the bell or buzzer and the lamp 69. Consequently, as the actuatorresumes its normal position of Fig. 1, the record tape with its recordhas been fedforward out of sight and possibility of being tampered with,the aperture over the record tape or the registration platen is closed,the signal means are disconnected and the block 35 again engages underthe shoulder 36 of the trip 32 on the bar 28 and the device is inposition for a subsequent operation. While the parts are in their normalposition as shown in Fig..1, -the projection 30 of the bar 28 is enteredin the recess 31 of the actuator 17 (see also Fig. 8) and this recess isdirectly above the shaft 11. This provides a locking means so that if anattempt be made to operate the perforating means in any way other thanby the actuator, the bar 28 cannot move because of projection 30 beingheld in recess 31 and therefore the perforating means remain immovableunless legitimately operated.

The modification of 8 is shown with the parts in normal position; thismodification referring only to the perforating means so that the otherparts of the device remain the same. As the actuator 17 moves away fromnormal, the trip 77 is carried upward by the pin 78 and rides over thecam surface 82 of the piece 81 which rocks this piece about its pivot 80and mal-zes contact between'the points 83 and S-l to close the circuitincluding wires 8687 and 88-89. This energizes the solenoid 74 to causethe punch 40 to pass through the record tape 7. The action is onlymomentary for as the trip 77 passes the cam face 82, the piece 81recovers to normal position under the action of the spring 81 and breaksthe contact between the points 8% and 83 so that the solenoid becomesinactive and the punch 1O is withdrawn upwards by the spring 76. As theactuator 17 moves backward to its normal position in a counterclockwisedirection, the trip 77 ridesdown over the cam surface 82 of the piece 81against the tension of the spring 7 9 until the two are clear whereuponthe spring 79 returns the trip 77 to its position against the pin 78.

From the foregoing disclosure ofmy invention, many advantages will befound among which may be mentioned that every operation of the handlegives an unalterable vis ble record of the call which, together withwhatever message is endorsed upon the record tape, immediately passesbeyond the control of the operator and is concealed from him so that itcannot again be reached. The extent of movement of the actuatordetermines the surface of tape exposed up to the full opening'of theaperture in the cover so that messages of varying length may be writtenand also one of indefinite length by successive movement of the handle,each portion of the message so made passing out of sight of theoperator. Therefore not only does each movement of the actuatorperforate the tape and cause the signals to' work as long as thisactuator is away from its normal position but every message is held fromthe View and control of every one but the proper person. As a check uponcalls and messages and to prevent tampering from the interior,

the record tape may be cut by the edge 48 to form a zero line and onesinitials or other mark may be placed Ont-he inner end of the tapethrough the aperture 52 so that everything subsequent to that point canbe'determined with certainty as it appears on the tape with assurancethat no part of the tape with its record has been removed. The continualaction of the signals while the handle is held away from normal insuresthe operator being heard and even without a written message on the tape,the perforation regissolenoid in the case of electrical perforating.

I have chosen to show my invention in a preferred form merely by way ofillustration and explanation. It will be obvious that many changes andvariations may be made without departing from the spirit of my inventionand all such changes and variations I include within the scope of myclaims.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a member attached to the side ofa wall and having a supply of record tape therein, said member having anopening to permit access to said tape for inscribing messages thereon,means for conveying the record tape from said member through the wall,recording means in operative relation to said record tape, a ratchetmechanism for feedingthe tape through the conveying means in the wall, alever for operating said ratchet mechanism, and means controlled by thelever for operating said recording means to make records on the tapespaced in correspondence yvith the amounts of manipulations of saidever.

2. In a device of the class described, a member attached to the side ofa wall and having a supply of record tape therein, said member having anopening to permit access to said tape for inscribing messages thereon,means for conveying the record tape from said member through the wall,a--plunger for making perforations in the record tape situated on theother side of the wall, a lever operated mechanism for feeding the tapethrough the wall, a pivoted bar extending through the wall and adaptedto operate the plunger, and means associated with the lever operatedmechanism for operating the pivoted bar.

3. In a call register, the combination with a housing for attachment toa wall having an opening therethrough, a supply of record tape in saidhousing, said housing provided with an opening adjacent to said tape,and means for feeding the tape from the housing through the opening inthe wall, of a closure normally covering said opening, and a memberoperable to withdraw the closure varying amounts from the openingthrough the housing to permit access to varying amounts of the tape andfor actuating the feeding means for feeding the tape through the openingin the wall in amounts corresponding to the degree the closure has beenwithdrawn from the opening whereby with each actuation of the operatingmember the portion of tape exposed through the opening' in the housingduring the actuation of the operating member is withdrawn from furtheraccess by the operator and a new portion brought into position by thefeeding means.

4. In a call register, the combination with a housing for attachment toa wall having an opening therethrough over which the housing is mounted,said housing adapted to receive a supply of record tape and providedwith an opening permitting access to the tape in the housing forinscribing thereon, and means for feeding the tape from the housingthrough the wall to an accessible position beyond the wall, of anoperating member for actuating said feeding means, means for recordingon the tape, and means to prevent the actuation of the recorder 6X- ceptas effected by the actuation of said operating member, wherebyunauthorized with drawal of the tape from the housing through theopening in the wall may be detected.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification this3rd day of Dec., 1925.

ARTHUR PENTECOST.

